The Eanes school board in Austin recently passed a policy requiring all new teachers to attain a master’s degree in “teacher leadership” within eight years. The Austin American-Statesman reports the policy will go into effect for teachers hired in the 2008-2009 school year. The Partnership for Teacher Excellence Program, an Eanes Education Foundation, will subsidize roughly half the cost for tuition and books. Eanes will also pay a $2,000 yearly stipend to teachers with a master’s degree.
Did the school board members research if a master’s degree leads to more effective teachers? The research is extremely clear in revealing that possession of an advanced degree has absolutely no correlation to higher teacher effectiveness. The Texas Public Policy Foundation‘s recent white paper on teacher compensation discusses this misconception.
Schools are notorious for wasting resources on fads that do not lead to more classroom learning. Subsidizing a master’s degree in education and paying teachers yearly stipends for it is a perfect example. Approximately 50 percent of teachers nationwide have a master’s degree; yet America still has ridiculously high dropout rates and high illiteracy rates.
Ausin’s esteemed Eanes school district would be wise to rethink this policy and target their resources on proven methods for increasing teacher quality.
– Brooke Terry